In Which Sarah Gets A Kitten
by VampireApple
Summary: Jareth was perfectly content to stay as an owl with Sarah. Then the kitten came. J/S.
1. Prologue

In Which Sarah Gets A Kitten

By VampireApple

Prologue

Sarah was rather sure that the owl was Jareth. Or at least a feathery minion of Jareth.

Even since Sarah had gotten home for the Labyrinth a white owl had been nesting in her tree. At first she had refused anything to do with Him, and once or twice had run screaming from Him. After a few weeks she had slowly gotten over her paranoia. When she went to the park she would talk to Him. Slowly the owl got closer and closer, until He was able to perch on Sarah's arm or shoulder.

When the weather got colder Sarah felt sorry for Him. He would stay on the tree branch next to her window and hoot pathetically. One cold night Sarah had cautiously let Him in. He had flown right to her bed and stared at her expectantly. Sarah debated about throwing Him out again, but decided against it. Instead she got in bed and was pleasantly surprised when He cuddled up to her. When spring came Sarah still let him come in and sleep with her. She never called Him by name, or gave Him any sort of nick-name. She only referred to Him as Him, or the owl. Anything else seemed too weird.

Now, three years later Sarah was inseparable from her owl.

During the school year He would come in the afternoon, right after Sarah came home from school. He would leave when Sarah walked out the door for school. Then during summer vacation He would be with her often. Sometimes Sarah would wonder about His Kingdom, but figured He could bend time to suit His needs so she didn't worry over much.

At first her parents worried about the strange bird that followed their daughter around and voiced their concerns. Sarah ignored them and they fought semi-constantly over it. They tried to interest in other animals or activities, with no luck. Then on Sarah's eighteenth birthday her parents got her a kitten.

Thus the war began.

_I'm pretty happy with this. The whole story is written out, so I'll have the up-date on Friday, and will update every Friday. Unless I get fifteen reviews, then I'll update on Wednesday. _

_Please review!_


	2. This Means War

In Which Sarah Gets A Kitten

By VampireApple

This Means War

Sarah sat on her bed, dangling a string in front of the kitten. She had named her Firepoint VIII. She wasn't quite sure how she felt about the kitten. On one hand she knew her parents -Karen- wanted her to have a _normal_ pet. Sarah snorted. As if the owl was her pet.

_Bet He'd get a kicked outta that_, she thought.

On the other had, the kitten was so cute! But, Sarah must remain vigilant. This was not the first animal that Karen had tried to get her interested in. The first Christmas He had been with her Karen decided to get Sarah a parakeet, whom Sarah had named Firepoint. Karen has said that if Sarah wanted a bird she must have an acceptable one. Firepoint I had been set up in Sarah's bedroom and had lasted all of two days. Somehow, on December 27th, owl and parakeet had ended up in the same room -Karen and Robert's- unsupervised and made a mess. Firepoint was gone the very next day. For the Easter after that Karen had gotten Sarah a turtle, Firepoint II. Toby had taken that pet for himself, much to Karen's dismay.

The last animal Karen had gotten Sarah was a hamster. When Sarah had seen the little creature she had tried to explain to Karen what, exactly, owls ate. Karen didn't listen thus Firepoint VII joined the family.

Sarah had honestly tried to keep Him away the little creature, but to no avail. Sarah didn't truly believe that He ate the hamster, just returned it to a pet store. Hopefully the kitten was already to big for Him to eat.

Surprisingly He and Merlin got along very well. It was just all the other animals He didn't like.

"I wonder what He'll think," Sarah mused aloud as the kitten tumbled. "Awww."

She picked Firepoint up and brought her eye level. She looked into those cute little green eyes. "Now, I know you're really cute, but I have to be honest with you. My heart belongs to another, so you'll never be first, okay?" The kitten tried to bat her noise. Sarah giggled. "I know you're adorable, but I also know He'll be jealous. Be nice to Him, okay?"

She set the kitten down. Reaching over to her nightstand she grabbed the cat brush to brush Firepoint. Not too long after Sarah started she heard what she'd been waiting for; a hoot at the window. Even though it was spring it was still a bit chilly outside, so she kept her window closed, much to the vexation of the owl.

She got up from the bed and let Him in. He flew up on her outstretched arm. "Hello. I have a little surprise for you. Promise to be nice. I don't think Karen's gotten over Firepoint VII yet." She stroked His head and turned towards the bed. He blinked then gave a hiss of displeasure when He saw what had taken His spot on the bed.

"Be nice. My parents got her for my birthday, so I might as well keep her. And don't eat her."

To reassure Him Sarah brought Him to her chest to cuddle with Him. He snuggled in, but kept glaring at the kitten. Sarah sighed. "This is going to be a looong night."

Everything went well until it was time for Sarah to shower and get ready for bed.

He had refused to leave her arm all afternoon, but she didn't want Him watching her take a shower, or getting dressed. Nor did she want to leave Him alone with Firepoint. He would use the chance to do something evil.

"I'm not letting you in the bathroom with me," she told Him as she tried to pry Him off her arm. He gave her a stubborn look and clutched her arm with His claws.

Finally she was able to get Him off. She grabbed Firepoint and ran into the bathroom. She heard a _thunk_, then an annoyed hoot.

"You can't come in," she told the door. There was some scratching. Sarah sighed. "I'll be done soon."

The hoots grew louder and more frantic, as did the scratching.

"Sarah!" Karen screeched from the lower level of the house. "Shut that bird up!"

Sarah carefully opened the door, making sure there was no way the bird could get though. "I can't control Him like that, I told you!"

"Then throw it outside!"

"He'll stop when I get out of the shower!"

"Then hurry up, or you won't find it when you're done!"

Sarah muttered curse and a few more choice words bout her stepmother. "Go bother Toby," she told the owl.

The owl glared at her and hooted what Sarah was sure were swear words. Then He flew off to Toby's room.

It was one of the fastest showers she'd ever taken. The kitten faired well. The only moment of worry she had was when Firepoint fell in the toilet while Sarah was washing her hair. Other then getting wet Firepoint was fine.

She dumped the kitten off in her room and went to Toby's. She watched boy and owl play a strange came of tag for a moment from the doorway.

"Alright Toby, its time for bed. Karen will be up in a moment," she said as she picked Toby up and gently tossed him on his bed.

"Awww, do I ave to?" Toby gave her pitifully puppy eyes.

"Yes, not goodnight," she kissed his forehead. He hoped over to Toby to let the boy hug him goodnight. Then He climbed on her arm.

"You're such a softie," she told the owl as she shut Toby's door.

He nipped her finger lightly. Sarah laughed and started to stroke his head.

Getting into bed was another battle. Both the kitten and the owl wanted to snuggle up to Sarah. He was holding His own against the small ball of fluff and Sarah found it slightly amusing. Finally she set Firepoint down at the foot of her bed and brought Him up by her head. When everyone was settled Sarah let herself drift off to sleep.

_Shout out to Fabricated Revolution for being the 15th reviewer! I just got hit with a new plot twist for this story, and I'm going to publish that, instead of what I originally had. If people want I can post the different version after I'm done with this one._

_Oi. Originally there was going to have four chapters, but now I'm not sue if there will one or two more after this._

_Thank you everyone for your reviews! I'll update on Friday if I get 15 reviews again, if not then I'll update next Wednesday._

_Here's the score:_

_Kitten: 2_

_Jareth: 1_

_Please vote and review!_


	3. First Blood

In Which Sarah Gets A Kitten

By VampireApple

First Blood

(Subtitled: The Mummy Owl)

In her head, Sarah could hear the Jaws theme song playing.

When dinner was ready she had locked Firepoint in Toby's room and Him in her room. The abhorrence between the two animals had grown horribly over the past three weeks. It had gotten to the point where she had to separate them often.

She had just gone to Toby's room to find the door cracked open. She slowly walked to her room, dreading what she would find. He door was cracked open as well. The Jaws themed changed to the Psycho theme as she pushed the door open.

There were feathers and fur everywhere. Little drops of brown and red littered her carpet, her furniture and her walls. Sarah let out a horrified gasp and her eyes widened in shock. She looked around madly for the animals.

He was up on her bookcase, his wings spread open in a menacing poise. Sarah ran over to him. "Are you alright? Come down here!"

He more or less fell into her arms. "What is wrong with you?" she demanded. His white feathers had spots of blood on it and there was a nasty cut by His eye. She cuddled Him up to her chest and cooed to Him while He hooted pathetically.

"Poor baby. I can't believe you got beat up by a kitten."

He hooted indigently. She kissed His forehead and set Him on her bed so she good looked for the kitten.

Sarah found the kitten under her desk. She was in a quivering ball and hissed at Sarah when she tried to bring her out. "Poor baby. Was the big mean owl mean to you?"

She calmed Firepoint down by stroking and petting her. The kitten really wasn't that bad off. There were a few scratched on her, but Sarah could tell that He had exercised some restraint.

She pinned Him with a sharp look. "I'll be right back, you stay here." She left the room to find Karen so her stepmother could take care of Firepoint. She found Karen in the kitchen, cleaning up from dinner.

"Karen, Firepoint attacked by owl and she needs to be clean up."

Karen glared at her. "Why can't you do it?"

"Because I need to take care of my owl," Sarah calmed explained and set the kitten on the table.

"Sarah, don't do that! That animal is filthy!"

"Then why did you get her?"

Karen came around and roughly snatched Firepoint off the table, making the kitten mewl. "An owl is not a decent pet!"

"I like Him just fine and so does Toby," with those parting words Sarah headed back up stairs, ignoring Karen's calls.

In her bedroom she found Toby hugging the disgruntled owl. "Toby, you need to let Him go. I have to clean Him up."

"He's not dirty."

"I know, but He's hurt," Sarah said in a coaxing voice. "I have to make Him better. Why don't you help me?"

"Okay!" Toby said, delighted to be able to help his sister and his favorite pet.

Sarah pried Him out of Toby's grasp and He gave her a relived look. She led the way into the bathroom and instructed Toby to find a towel. Sarah then proceeded to find bandages and the hydrogen peroxide. Then she sat on the toilet lid, put the towel on her lap and indicated He should hop on. He gave her a slightly distrustful look, but did as she wanted.

She poured the peroxide on His scrapes and cuts. When He hissed she gave Him a look and said "Baby." Then she wiped away all excess liquid. Toby then helped her apply bandages. In the end He looked somewhat like King Tutankhamen.

Much to Sarah's amusement, Toby insisted on getting a picture and He tried in vain to get away. The siblings ended up getting several pictures of the mummy owl.

"Sarah, how did He get hurt?"

Sarah sighed. "Firepoint went after Him."

"No! That was mean." Toby frowned, then brightened suddenly. "What if she sleeps with me?"

Sarah considered the idea. "Alright. That'll work."

When it was time for Toby's bedtime Sarah locked the kitten in her brother's room.

When it was time for her own bedtime she tucked a relieved owl in with her.

"You poor thing, you've been through a lot, haven't you. I do appreciate you not killed Firepoint however, Toby likes her."

He gave her an annoyed look and settled down.

"Goodnight," she kissed _His_ head.

_Hehe, poor Jareth. I think there's only one more chapter coming, but I wont be able to post until Monday at the earliest. Christmas is coming up and I'll be spending it family. Thank you to all my wonderful reviews, I've never been so pleased or inspired by ya'll for any story before. Thank you!_

_Also, the majority of you still think the kitten will win. What do the rest of you think? I'd like to know!_


	4. A Goblin’s Kitten

In Which Sarah Gets A Kitten

By VampireApple

A Goblin's Kitten

The fighting only got worse between Him and Firepoint. Mostly it was her attacking Him, but He would go after her a few times. Nothing serious, He would grab Firepoint and fly her to a high spot the kitten couldn't get down from. It was driving Karen crazy. Sarah enjoyed that part.

Toby, however, was very attached to both annoying creatures and got upset when they fought. Sarah noticed that He tried not to instigate a fight when Toby was around. She gave Him major props for that.

Sarah was now holding bet with herself on when Jareth would appear. She was hoping it would be soon. She was graduating in a week and moving to New York in two. Karen was being even more unbarring then usual and Sarah's stress level was through the roof. She was just happy she had already passed all her finals.

At present she was just returning from her final day of school.

Sarah opened her door on a frustrated sigh. She tossed her car keys on her vanity and glanced up at her bookcase where He usually was. However, Sarah got distracted by what was on her bed.

Jareth was lounging on her bed in dark blue jeans, a tight fitting black muscle shirt and a leather jacket. With Firepoint curled up on his chest. He was petting the little fur ball. Firepoint was purring. Loudly.

Sarah did a fine impersonation of a fish before she doubled over laughing.

"Shut up," Jareth growled at her.

Sarah ignored him and fell down, still laughing.

Jareth grabbed the kitten by the scuff of her neck and strode over to Sarah. "It is not funny. This thing" he jiggled Firepoint gently "has been the bane of my existence for the past few months. To find the bedamned creature is enamored with me…"

"Poor k-king," Sarah cooed, struggling with her mirth. "A k-kitten is in l-love with you!" She whipped tears off her cheeks and stood up.

Jareth snorted. "You should show some respect."

"I'm just glad you showed up. I thought I was going to go crazy, with her attacking you all the time."

"Try having it happen to you."

Sarah grinned briefly then demanded. "Why are you here?"

Jareth settled the kitten on his shoulder then gave Sarah a considering look. "Waiting for you to grow up."

Sarah's first reaction was insult, but she swallowed her retort and considered him. "I have been doing a lot of that lately, haven't I?"

"Yes." Came the dry reply.

Sarah ignored her sarcastic remark again. "Why wait at all?"

Jareth looked way from her before answering. "I am not used to waiting. What happened was mostly of my own folly." He looked back at her. "Did you know that there was a time when one forth of all humans born had some trace of magic in them?"

Sarah watched him cautiously, wondering at the turn of the conversation. "No."

"If the magic was strong enough that child would be spirited away by the Fae. If the child held Elvin magic then they would be given in the care of the Elvin King. If they had Goblin magic they would be given to the Goblin King." Firepoint batted at him, demanding attention. Jareth petted her absently.

"Okay, what does this have to do with me?"

"By some twist of fate, Sarah, you have been gifted with Goblin magic. A considerable amount of it," Jareth watched her intently.

"You have got to be kidding me." She snorted.

"No. I felt it the moment you were conceived. I have watched you since the day you were born. You will not come into your true powers for a few more years still."

Sarah stared at him, speechless.

"How else do you think you defeated my labyrinth with such ease? Do not be fooled. You are not the only one to have done so, but none have done it as you have. You have felt it at times. I know you have." He smiled briefly. "Your brother has the gift as well, stronger then yours. I suspect it was because he was there at such a young age. He did not have it before you wished him away."

"What… what will happen?"

"Both of you will eventually need to come Underground, Toby sooner then you. Both of you will stop aging around your thirtieth year. Your powers will fully mature in that time."

"Huh." Sarah felt dazed, like she had been hit with a truck. A few times.

Jareth narrowed his eyes. "Is that all you can say?"

"No, but give me a few days and I'll think of plenty. This is a lot to spring on a person," she complained.

Jareth smirked. "I know. If I did not 'spring' it on you I never would have gotten it out for all your interruptions."

Sarah ignored him and sat down on her bed. "I guess I'm going to be seeing you a lot, huh?"

"Yes."

"And I'm guessing you're going to go see Toby too?"

"Yes."

"Well, I guess Firepoint will be glad you're stick around," Sarah sighed.

Jareth gave her a look. "Just the cat?"

"I might be okay with you sticking around. Maybe. In a few years."

Jareth smiled slowly. "It is a good thing I have forever."

_Wow! I have no idea were that ending came from. It was not what I intended when I started this chapter, but I'm happy with it._

There is nothing like the glow of accomplishment that tells you you have finished a story successfully. Thank you to all my reviewers! You have been such a blessing, I don't think I've ever had better. Thank you so much!

I hope you all have enjoyed this little fic, I sure have.

Marry Christmas to all!


	5. Stone House

In Which Sarah Gets A Kitten

By VampireApple

Stone House

With the soft pillows beneath me and the fire at my back, I was in heaven. Now if only Mistress would pet me. I purred louder. Maybe she hadn't heard me. I opened one eye and peeked over at her.

She was playing with her other pet. They always tossing balls about, but never let me join in on the fun.

Other then that, I couldn't complain. Here, at the Stone House, I was Queen of all the stupid creatures. They ran in fear of me, and they did every thing I said. Mistress's pet seemed to like when I bossed them around. He would always rub my ears when I did it.

At first Mistress only took me here a few times a season, but then we started coming more and more often, along with Little Master. Mistress and I had now been here for three solid summers. Little Master came down a lot too. I enjoyed playing with him.

Little Master was also allowed to play with the balls. He, unlike Mistress and her pet, let me play too.

This always seemed to annoy Mistress's pet.

The best part about this place was that there was no White Beast. I still saw bits of its fur, and caught the scent of it sometimes, but I was mighty enough to keep it away.

I decided enough was enough and stretched. Then I moseyed over to Mistress and her pet. I plopped down on Mistress's lap and looked up at her pitifully.

"Aw, poor little Firepoint. Have we been ignoring you?" Mistress cooed. I purred and she started rubbing my ears.

"Sarah, we are not done," Mistress's pet said. We both ignored him. "Sarah, you almost had it."

Mistress looked at him and smiled. "I was no where close and you know it. It'll take me a little longer to conjure anything inside a crystal. Besides, I bet Firepoint is hungry, aren't you cutie? How bout some fish?"

I knew the word fish and started to purr louder. Mistress swept me up in her arms and headed out the door. I smirked at Mistress's pet over her shoulder. He glared at me and followed us to the kitchen.

"By the way, Toby can spend next week with us. I've convinced Karen that I can handle a nine year old for a whole week," Mistress said as she got a plate out for me.

Mistress's pet grunted.

Mistress laughed. "He's looking forward to it. Or it might be that he only has one more week of school left. Goodness knows he wouldn't want to spend his summer vacation with an old man. But he's been talking about wanting to learn how to change objects into something else." My eyes where glued to the fish as she brought it out and set it on the plate.

There was a sign then he replied "I am not that old. The boy is smart and can learn anything he sets his mind too."

The plate touched the floor and I blocked everything out but the taste of fish.

I love living in the Stone House.

I know I said that the fic was over, but a lot of you said the ending didn't feel right, and I agreed. Well, this popped out of my head, and I think it fits much better. Kinda wraps everything up with a nice bow, doesn't it?

_Anyway, thank you to all my reviewers. I hope you have enjoyed this fanfic!_


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